Hat shop info

[wcbrown]

question, why is it a lot of these hats shops will give you info on, the brim, the construction, material, obviously sizes and colors but next to nothing on the crown height?

 

[fedoracentric]

question, why is it a lot of these hats shops will give you info on, the brim, the construction, material, obviously sizes and colors but next to nothing on the crown height?

Because the idea of models with different crown heights and the shifting crown heights due to fashion trends is practically a thing of the past. These days hat manufacturers don't change crown heights very much so they remain constant between westerns and fedoras. So the whole idea that a salesman should concern himself with finding out crown heights is gone from the vernacular of hat sellers. These days, "the crown is just the crown," if you know what I mean? Hat makers don't mess around with height in the same way they used to so it is no longer a feature that salesmen think people will care about. If any of that makes sense.

 

[Topper]

Crown height ( likewise brim width) can vary around the crown - I personally measure crown height at the front of the Brim.

There is no mandated defacto industry standard, so any measurement would be subjective.

 

[DJH]

I suppose that since the traditional way to measure crown height was a measurement of the height of the open crown, the fact most modern hats are creased in the factory has made that a meaningless number.

 

[fedoracentric]

I suppose that since the traditional way to measure crown height was a measurement of the height of the open crown, the fact most modern hats are creased in the factory has made that a meaningless number.

An even better description and way to describe what I was struggling to get at.

Crown height is meaningless as a sales tool these days.

 

[wcbrown]

no you guys are making good sense here, i am just trying to get up to speed on all of this thank you.

 

[GregNYC]

I agree with all the above. As a new hat wearer this last summer, I began by wanting less of a hat. So I preferred a lower crown look. I didn't know how to translate that into numbers. It's taken many months for me to understand more of the effects of a low crown vs high crown. Now I see that for me to get my favored look from a fedora, I need a higher un-tapered crown. But it took some months for me to understand that. For a beginner, crown-height numbers would have been meaningless. So I think that crown height measurement seems to be one of the more obscure hat-metrics for a newcomer....


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[WesternHatWearer]

Crown height, not as worthless as you may think. I am, as my member name states, a western hat wearer. A hat with too short a crown height can make a huge impact. The ability to have certain creases is severely limited if the crown does not have enough height. Take for example the cattleman's crease, the hop along, the tom mix, the packer, or the russell. If the hat is not made with sufficient material in the crown, then the hat sits too high on the wearers head after it has been creased. Insufficient material may also cause for the creases to be less than full in appearance.
I have a custom made hat that I would like more crown height in. No one says anything but if you look long enough or close enough you can see where the extra crown height is needed.
Crown height may be a bigger deal for western hats. I do not own anything but westerns so I cannot speak with certainty.
I am now extremely aware of crown height as it relates to where the hat sits on my head, how well the crease(s) is/are formed, and how the appearance of the hat is effected.

Just my opinion.

 

[JoeyC]

Crown height, not as worthless as you may think. I am, as my member name states, a western hat wearer. A hat with too short a crown height can make a huge impact. The ability to have certain creases is severely limited if the crown does not have enough height. Take for example the cattleman's crease, the hop along, the tom mix, the packer, or the russell. If the hat is not made with sufficient material in the crown, then the hat sits too high on the wearers head after it has been creased. Insufficient material may also cause for the creases to be less than full in appearance.
I have a custom made hat that I would like more crown height in. No one says anything but if you look long enough or close enough you can see where the extra crown height is needed.
Crown height may be a bigger deal for western hats. I do not own anything but westerns so I cannot speak with certainty.
I am now extremely aware of crown height as it relates to where the hat sits on my head, how well the crease(s) is/are formed, and how the appearance of the hat is effected.

Just my opinion.

And a valid one at that. To me a hat starts with crown height, I like straight up no taper crowns at least 5.5." min. but prefer higher, the more square at the top the better. Once bashed I still want that the crown to be relatively tall, makes a difference in the way it appears on me, both western and fedoras. With custom hats you can request what you want, with stock hats, unless you know the height of the crown from experience you could be disappointed. I have several Stetsons with a rancher (rancher models and El Patron models )crease with an 01 blocked crown, I know that those hats will measure 5" to the center of the crease in front. Most rancher/ cattleman creases sometimes barely make 43/8". I also have an El Patron that only measures 41/4" to center crease, can't recall block # I don't know which number represents the block but I know it's not an 01. Needless to say I was bit disappointed when I received it. Still, a fine hat. I believe even Stetsons crown height listed in their new catalog could be off, my new Strats are a bit taller than they list.

 

[Joao Encarnado]

I also favor a big crown. I end wearing more my big crowns than my lower crowns.

 

[tropicalbob]

Rereading this page, I couldn't agree more with the comments. When I first got into this, I thought a lower crown and smaller brim were what I wanted, but as time went on I realized that, particularly with my large head and face, I needed larger brims. Then I found that the 5 to 5 1/2" crowns worked for me, particularly with C-crowns or teardrops so as to avoid tapers, which look awful on me.

 

[tropicalbob]

The reason I mention the above is that I used to like some of the styles offered by Worth and Worth, but looking at them yesterday I was surprised and disappointed by the really low crown heights, which I hadn't noticed before. Funny how time can affect tastes.

 

[hatsRme]

The reason I mention the above is that I used to like some of the styles offered by Worth and Worth, but looking at them yesterday I was surprised and disappointed by the really low crown heights, which I hadn't noticed before. Funny how time can affect tastes.

More so experience, Bob. But the fun is in the journey...

 

[Benzadmiral]

The reason I mention the above is that I used to like some of the styles offered by Worth and Worth, but looking at them yesterday I was surprised and disappointed by the really low crown heights, which I hadn't noticed before. Funny how time can affect tastes.

I bought a lot of Stetsons and Biltmores at Meyer the Hatter in the '90s. Only a few of those are left, two Temples, an Arno mid-ribbon with a centerdent, and a no-name beater with a C-Crown. They look "off" to me now.

 

[JoeyC]

The reason I mention the above is that I used to like some of the styles offered by Worth and Worth, but looking at them yesterday I was surprised and disappointed by the really low crown heights, which I hadn't noticed before. Funny how time can affect tastes.

Had the same experience with Worth and Worth. Hat looked good on the website, totally disappointed when I received it. Since that hat can't be found, I assume I donated it. It certainly isn't the same W&W I used to patronize in the seventies when I bought many Borsos. from them, still have a few, Allesandrias and a continental Homburg, the Homburg is new , never worn.

 

[KingAndrew]

I am also frustrated by the lack of info on crown height. It seems especially important on westerns and open crowns, but even serious shops like J&J in New York leave it off their web site.

 

[WesternHatWearer]

I am also frustrated by the lack of info on crown height. It seems especially important on westerns and open crowns, but even serious shops like J&J in New York leave it off their web site.

Perhaps the more we ask them for the information regarding the crown(s) they will pick up on the fact we want to know. Or we could just begin to tell them outright that we want crown height to be standard information.